


My Girls

by WashSpirit



Category: Preath, Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: AU, F/F, PREATH - Freeform, Presston - Freeform, Romantic Comedy, USWNT
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-06-03
Packaged: 2018-06-01 12:31:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6519844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WashSpirit/pseuds/WashSpirit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Christen likes Tobin, but Tobin is hard to pin down.</p><p>The only logical solution to lure Tobin Heath in is by making her jealous. With slight persuasion Julie, Christen's best friend, agrees to pretend to date her to get the job done.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Julie's POV  
New Years Eve**

The party was under full swing when I arrived at Sydney's place. Everyone on the team was here, including my best friend Christen.

The older girl looked beautiful as she was pulling off a nice black dress. She definitely dressed to impress tonight.

I made my way over to her immediately, grabbing a drink as I went. I noticed she was conversing with Tobin Heath, another player on our school's soccer team.

I smiled inwardly at my friend's accomplishment.

For as long as Christen had known Tobin she had been enthralled with her.

The green eyed forward carried her affections in her heart, but not on her sleeve. In the back of the her head she had hoped that the tan midfielder was doing the same. Any chance that Christen could talk to the other girl she took it. And tonight was no different.

Julie let her friend be, not wanting to intrude, and made her way over to some new company.

It wasn't long before everyone was lost in their own conversations. Julie had joined her other teammates and drank happily with them as they joked around, making her laugh.

In a few minutes it would be midnight which would strike the arrival of the new year.

Julie hurriedly dismissed herself from her teammates and looked around for her best friend.

The blonde defender wanted Christen by her side when the clock struck twelve to start off the new year right. It had actually become a tradition for the two to spend the new year with each other.

As Julie looked around the room for her friend, she managed to spot her outside on the patio. The blonde made her way over to bring the other girl another drink.

When the defender stepped outside she made her way over to the patio's railing, which was overlooking the star studded city. Beside her stood the green eyed forward.

"Chris, come on! It's almost midnight," the taller girl couldn't help but say excitedly.

However, when she looked over to catch a glimpse of her friend her demeanor changed instantly.

The blonde's eyes soften as she saw the green eyed girl wipe away some tears that had landed on her cheeks.

"Chris? What's wrong?"

Christen chuckled under her breath as she continued to wipe at her face. She sniffled and looked ahead catching the view in front of her.

"It's nothing...it's just...stupid."

The girl turned her attention away from the city and looked towards her best friend.

"Don't worry about it, Jules."

Julie, however, couldn't help but be concerned for the shorter girl. She placed her arm around the other girl's shoulder and pulled her in close. Christen allowed the gesture and even went along with it as she rested her head on the taller girl's chest.

"Chris," the defender said quietly before continuing,"you know you can trust me with anything. What's wrong?"

The forward shook her head lightly, feeling very silly all of sudden. She pulled away from the blonde's embrace to look into her eyes.

"It's Tobin. I saw her dancing with Alex...I don't know I just thought that maybe...maybe she liked me back," the dark haired girl finished quietly before leaning into Julie again.

The blonde sympathized with her friend. She knew that Christen adored the talented midfielder and wanted their relationship to be something more than what it already was. Tobin, however, had a tendency to give out mixed signals.

Julie looked over Christen's head to get a view of the party inside.

Sure enough she saw Tobin and Alex sitting together on a sofa. Heath was speaking privately into the other girl's  ear allowing Alex to lean in closer. Technically it could of been platonic, but the midfielder didn't have that type of reputation.

Christen lifted her head and followed Julie's line of vision. The sight in front of her made her heart drop to the pit of her stomach.

She knew that technically Tobin wasn't hers to pin over but it made her question their relationship in its entirety.

_What did all those text mean? What did those late night calls stand for? What did Tobin mean when she looked into her eyes and told her she was beautiful?_

In that moment Christen felt betrayed or at the most deceived.

Inside the house the tan midfielder looked up and coincidently met the forward's gaze.

They both stared at each other for what seemed like forever.

Christen's head was swimming with a whirlwind of emotions but one stood out amongst all the others.

She was jealous.

In a fit of rebellion she turned over in Julie's arms and met her brilliant blue eyes.

The blonde looked down curiously before she felt a pair of soft lips on hers.

Taken aback by the gesture the blonde stood still in shock. Her breathing had stopped but her heart was racing. She could hear it ringing in her ears as the other girl pressed into her gently.

When the forward didn't pull away immediately, Julie began to lean into the kiss. She closed her eyes and took in the taste of the shorter girl. The remains of alcohol were evident on her lips, but there was also a tint of something sweet.

Christen pulled away and met the other girl's eyes again and saw evident shock written on her face. When she looked over to see Tobin she had noticed that the girl had sunken back into her seat and wore a confused expression on her face.

On the inside Christen felt oddly proud of herself. The forward wanted give the other girl a taste of her own medicine and it worked out pretty well in her opinion. She smiled to herself at her small victory.

"Uh..Chris?"

The forward looked up to see her best friend's searching eyes. She opened her mouth to apologize and explain, but they were interrupted by the sounds of everyone celebrating inside.

The clock had struck twelve.

Julie noticed that the party guest had begun to open more champaign bottles for another round of drinks. People gathered around slipping on some party favors as they embraced each other happily.

Out of the the corner of her eye the blonde noticed Tobin stalk out of the room and dismissing herself from the party unnoticed.

"Jules, I'm sorry. I just...I don't know what came over me."

Julie silenced the girl by dragging her inside and getting them both a drink.

"Don't worry. We'll talk about it later. Let's drink to the new year," the defender said as she clashed glasses with the other girl.

Christen smiled appreciatively at her friend as she drank from her glass.

Julie hoped that the shorter girl would drop the kiss and everything that it did or did not mean.

The night carried on and eventually both girls walked back to their dorm room. The kiss left unmentioned.


	2. Deal?

**Julie's POV  
Next Morning**

I rolled over in bed as I heard the irritating sound of my alarm going off.  
A groan formed in the back of my throat as I reached over to shut it off.

I pulled my bedspread closer to my body as I sunk further into my mattress. My head was pounding slightly from last night. All I wanted to do now was sleep off my hangover.

I closed my eyes as I hugged the pillow next to me. I sighed contently as I relaxed and drifted off into my own subconscious.

A few seconds later, however, my roommate walked in making a great amount of noise.

My irritation was not evident as I turned my back to the known intruder.

"Jules?"

The voice was all too familiar to the blonde defender.

Not wanting to be rude, Julie answered the other girl with a hum.

When Christen realized that her friend was still sleeping she walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge.

"Julie, wake up. I need to tell you something. It's urgent," the forward whispered.

Christen shoved Julie lightly in order to get her attention. The rocking motion resulted in the blonde turning over with a heavy sigh.

Although Christen had interrupted her sleep she couldn't be upset with the other girl. The defender assumed that it must of been something serious for the other girl to be so persistent.

"What is it?"

Christen looked into the blonde's striking blue eyes and all her confidence was thrown out the window.  
She fumbled with her hands and looked away feeling embarrassed.

Julie noticed the girl's odd behavior and sat up to comfort her.

"Hey, Chris what is it," the blonde said softly as she placed a supportive hand on top of the other girl's arm.

Christen felt a sense of comfort at the touch which helped her settle her nerves. She looked back towards the blonde maintaining eye contact.

"Check your phone, Jules."

Julie pulled her eyebrows together in confusion. She slowly reached over to her bedside table and unplugged her phone from its' charger. She looked up to see the green eyed girl sitting quietly on her bed, before unlocking her phone screen.

"Check your messages," Christen said quietly as she looked down at her hands.

Julie nodded her head and scanned the messages she had received that morning.

Automatically the blonde saw an overwhelming amount of text messages from her close friends and teammates.

_Sydney:_   
_Hey JJ saw you with Press last night what's up with that?!_

_Kelley:_  
Y _esss Julie get your girl! Tell pressy I said 'hi'._

_Pinoe:_   
_I ship it.  
_

_Crystal:  
Girl, you should of told me you and CP were a thing! I'm so happy for you!_

The texts went on and on. Every message was directed towards her and Christen being a couple. Everyone was assuming that both girls were an official thing.

Julie was lost for words. When she looked up to meet Christen's eyes she felt even more worried. The green eyed girl had avoided the blonde's attention. The air around them was thick with a awkward tension.

Eventually Julie broke the silence by speaking up.

"They think...they think we're a thing."

The blonde couldn't stop herself from stumbling a bit. She felt anxious and just wanted to avoid the impending conversation. Color filled her cheeks as she realized the situation in its entirety.

Christen nodded at her best friend showing her that she understood the situation as well.

"It was because of the kiss," the forward said quietly looking over to the blonde.

Julie's breath hitched as she recalled last night's events.

The blonde fell back onto her bed with a groan and brought her hands to her head.

"Jules, I'm sorry. This is all my fault..."

The blue eyed girl shook her head lightly and made eye contact with her best friend.

"It's fine, Chris. We'll just tell them the truth...it was a drunk kiss and nothing more. I'm just a little embarrassed is all," Julie said truthfully.

Christen nodded her head but she was not content.

"Jules...Tobin called me this morning."

The midfielder's name made Julie sit upright. The blonde smiled knowingly at her friend.

"Yeah?"

Christen smiled back and nodded.

"Yeah, she was sweet."

Julie was happy for her friend. It seemed that the other girl's crush was coming around.

"She also congratulated us on our 'relationship'," the green eyed girl said as her smile faded.

"She sounded sad when she said it. Like if she didn't mean it."

Julie looked towards her friend carefully. At first glance the other girl seemed somber, but if one looked carefully you could see the wheels turning in her head.

"I think she was jealous," Christen said finally as she got off the bed and began to pace around the small dorm room.

Julie felt bad, like if all of this was somewhat her fault. She didn't want to make the other girl feel as if she was putting a strain on her real relationship.

"Chris it's cool. Tonight we will set the record straight. We'll tell everyone the truth and Tobin won't be jealous anymore," the blonde said in a rush.

Christen looked at the other girl with a unreadable expression on her face. Julie sunk back a little on her bed. A comfortable silence occupied the room as both girls stared at each other.

"No."

The blonde tilted her head to the side, not sure if she heard her friend correctly.

"No?"

Christen shook her head lightly making her brown curls bounce on her shoulders.

"Tobin was real yesterday, Jules. She opened up to me. She realized that she had some competition."

The blonde sat awkwardly on her bed letting the words process in her head.

"Chris, where are you going with this?"

The dark haired girl sighed before sitting down on the bed again. She laid back and looked up at the ceiling as Julie watched on.

"I think we should keep this up. I think it could help."

"Keep what up," the blonde asked unsure of what the girl was insinuating.

Christen turned her head to look at her best friend.

"I think we should pretend to be a couple. I know it sounds crazy, but this could be what me and Tobin need. I need to make her want me."

Julie pressed her hand to her head as she rested her back against her headboard.

After a hour of arguing and debate Julie caved in to her best friend.

In the end Christen had told Julie that it would only last up to a month before she would "break up" with her and get together with Tobin. Christen also said that they would only have to act like a couple around Tobin and some teammates.

When Julie asked why she couldn't just get with Tobin now, Christen answered her by saying that Tobin had a problem with commitment.

"..But if she feels like something is being taken away from her, she'll come to her senses and want it back," the forward told her friend evenly.

Julie agreed despite herself. After all if the roles were reversed Christen would do the same.

"Julie, all we need is a month. Just a month," the dark haired girl said before leaving her roommate to herself in their dorm.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is appreciated :)


	3. Helpless Romantic

**Week One  
January**

"I'm not doing that."

Christen rolled her eyes at her friend's stubbornness. Getting Julie to do anything she didn't agree with entirely was like pulling teeth.

"Come on it's not that bad," the striker tried to reason.

Julie looked at her friend incredulously. In all honesty she would've even taken offense to it if she didn't know the other girl so well.

Julie wasn't shocked when she realized that her best friend was planning on making their 'relationship' as realistic as humanly possible.

This, however, proved to be rather difficult on Christen's part because of the type of girl that she was.

The green eyed girl was the type of person who believed in fairy tales.

She was the type of girl who believed in the spectacular idea of destiny and fate.

She was the type of college student that drank herbal tea in the evenings and relieved stress with breathing techniques in the morning.

But above all, she was the type of romantic that most would refer to as helpless.

"Chris, you can't let our cover story begin like that."

"Why not," the green eyed girl questioned confusingly.

"Because it's too cheesy. No one is going to believe that I took you on a extravagant boat ride for our first date," the blonde said as she reread her term paper.

"Not a boat, Julie. A yacht. And why not? You give off the romantic vibe...kinda," the girl said eyeing the blonde like a plausible prospect.

Julie couldn't help but chuckle under her breath at her roommate. The other girl was a character, there was no denying that, but the blue eyed student couldn't help but think that she was too much of a character.

"How about this...," the blonde began as she gave the other girl her full attention by putting her laptop away.

"Why don't you come up with different scenarios and I'll tell you which one I liked best. And that will be the cover story behind us. Sound good?"

Christen couldn't help but pout. She really liked the story about the yacht, but deep down she knew Julie wasn't going to budge.

Eventually the dark haired girl agreed to her friend's proposal and began brain storming on different ideas for their 'first date'.

Christen carefully considered what the perfect scenario could be for the pair.

The cover story had to be romantic. It had to be something that led people to think that Julie was the perfect girlfriend. Most importantly, however, it had to get Tobin riled up when she heard it.

The only problem was that Julie didn't want to come off as being too sappy (much to Christen's disappointment).

Overnight the dark haired girl pondered over her personality and Julie's in an effort to conjure up a story that met her needs but was also realistic enough for the blonde.  
After all people needed to buy their tale if they wanted this to work out.

"Julie," the girl exclaimed in the middle of the night as a thought came into her head.

The sudden outburst startled her roommate out of her slumber. Julie had already retired herself to sleep, but Christen's excited squeal made her sit up on her bunk.

"What?! What is it?! What happened," the blonde questioned as she looked around the dorm in confusion.

"Jules, I figured it out! I know what we can say!"

For a second Julie looked at her roommate with confusion in her eyes before the other girl's words settled in her head. The taller of the two scowled slightly as she realized why she had been startled awake.

"Chris, this could of waited till the morning. You scared me half to death.."

The blonde was cut off by her roommates pleas.

"I'm sorry, but you have to listen to me. Just give five minutes. After that I'll let you be and you can go back to sleep."

Julie sighed heavily as she rested her back lightly against her headboard and gave the other girl her undivided attention.

"Okay, what is it?"

Christen smiled at her friend as she pushed the covers off her body and walked over to Julie's bed. The dark haired girl sat down on the side of the bunk and leaned in slightly as she gushed over her idea.

"Okay, so I was thinking of things we both do and things we both like..."

The blonde nodded her head accordingly to show the other girl that she was keeping up.

"...and I realized that our thing has always been soccer! So I was thinking we can tell people that we had our first date on the school's soccer field, but that it was a picnic, and that you snuck us in after hours to try to "impress" me."

Julie thought the story over and was surprised that Christen didn't add anything out of the ordinary to it.

"I like it," the blonde said finally.

Christen's eyes widened in surprised before she squealed and reached over to hug her best friend.

"Great, in this one you're not too much of a sap, but you still go out of your way to do something for me. It's perfect."

The taller of the two nodded her head tiredly in agreement before letting out a small yawn.

Christen noticed the other girl's tired gaze and excused herself from her bed.

"I'll let you sleep now, Jules. I just wanted to share that with you," the green eyed girl said as she made her way back into her own bunk.

"Goodnight JJ," the shorter of the two said as she turned off the lamp on her bedside table.

The blonde settled herself back onto her bed letting the story play over in her head. The strange thing about all of it was that the blonde could actually picture herself doing something like that with the other girl.

She wouldn't mind having a picnic for a first date. It was sweet and simple. It reflected her personality perfectly.

Sleep ridden the blue eyed girl let the thought leave her head as she closed her eyes.

"Goodnight, Chris."

Both players fell asleep shortly after.


	4. If Only

**Tobin's POV  
Week Two  
January**

The week went by smoothly and Christen had made Julie and herself as public as possible.

Although Christen was on cloud nine, posting pictures of her and Julie's date nights and movie outings, Tobin was less than thrilled.

The midfielder stalked the couple on social media (much to her own embarrassment).  
It seemed that with every passing minute Christen would post something on her page that showed both her and Julie having a great time together.

The brown eyed girl would instinctively bite her bottom lip in frustration as she saw the forward cuddled up with the blonde defender on her live feed.  
It was enough to make her eyes water and her shoulders drop in defeat.

In the back of her head Tobin knew that Christen once expressed some interest in her and it stinged to know that the forward turned all of her affections towards someone else.

The middy didn't have anything against Julie, but that's what made her situation worse. The brown eyed girl would often lay awake at night pondering all the things that her blonde headed teammate was known for.

Academically the blonde was untouchable, athletically she was impeccable, and romantically she must of been close to perfect to win over someone like Christen Press.

The midfielder cursed herself under her breath for being too much of a wimp and not asking Christen out (like she had planned to do years ago).

Even Alex argued with the other girl saying that she needed to "woman up" and ask Christen out on a date before it was too late and she was no longer available.

"The worse she can say is no," the blue eyed forward use to say to her friend.

Tobin took this as an initiative and made it a point to talk to Christen at Syd's New Years Eve party.

Even then, however, the soccer player got cold feet.

As soon as the brown eyed girl got to Syd's party she found Christen and started conversing with her.  
Their conversation was going well, that is until Tobin began to get nervous. The soccer player's palms got sweaty as her body began to heat up.

The midfielder, not wanting to make a fool of herself in front of the other girl, excused herself from the striker hastily. Not long after she began to look around the room to find her best friend.

In that moment she needed Alex to calm her down and motivate her into sticking with her original plan.

When she finally found the blue eyed forward she noticed that she was dancing with a group of people. Tobin tagged along in a effort to get closer to Alex and explain her situation.

Of course while this was happening the brown eyed girl did not notice that Christen was watching the exchange from afar and had gotten the wrong idea.

Moments later Tobin escorted her friend to sit down on Syd's sofa so that they could talk. There Alex told her friend honestly that she needed to ask Christen out now or never. The pep talk surprisingly did wonders for the midfielder, and she got spurred on to go out and get 'her' girl.

However, when she scanned the party and met Christen's brilliant green orbs from across the room all the confidence that she had mustered up had deflated.

Tobin not only noticed that the other girl was wrapped securely in Julie's arms, but that she had shared a kiss with the blonde defender as well.

In that moment Tobin sunk into the sofa and sadly looked on at the couple in front of her.

Seconds later the clock had struck twelve and the New Year had begun.

With tears threatening to spill from her eyes she hurriedly said goodbye to Alex and left the party undetected.

It had been a week since the event occurred, and the couple's relationship was all that could be seen and talked about.

It was driving Tobin slightly mad, but there was nothing she was willing to do to stop it.

No matter how much she adored Christen she wasn't going to be the factor in her relationship that caused it to fail. Tobin didn't believe in cheating and so let the couple be.

She also liked Christen enough to see that she was happy, and Tobin didn't want to see someone (including herself) take that happiness away from her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys let me know what you think so far :)


	5. It's Not Working

**Christen's POV**

**Week 3  
January**

"Chris, do you really need to take a snap of us eating froyo," the blonde headed defender said as she picked up her plastic spoon.

Christen ignored the other girl as she proceeded to take a picture of Julie and herself as they shared a cup of the frozen dessert.

The blonde posed for the camera despite herself. When Christen lowered her hand, indicating that she was done, Julie relaxed and ate the yogurt silently.

The green eyed girl typed furiously on her phone and posted the picture as soon as she felt confident that it was flattering enough.

Christen looked up excitedly when she finished, but her smile faded when she saw her best friend.

The blonde was uncharacteristically quiet, and the other girl couldn't think of any logical reasons why. The green eyed forward had noticed the defender's odd behavior as of late, but figured that it was nothing.

However, deep down Christen knew better. Her best friend wasn't going to budge unless she was pushed to.

The blonde was selfless enough to put other people's needs before her own. That included clogging up her feelings if it meant that the people around her would not be burdened.

"Jules? Are you okay? You seem like you're somewhere else right now."

The forward had attempted to make the mood light, but to no avail.

The blonde just looked out the restaurant window and sighed to herself.

"How much longer do we have to do this, Chris?"

Christen wasn't sure how to respond to her friend's question. Instantly she knew what was causing Julie's behavior.

The blonde was getting restless with their pretending.

Deep down the striker knew it was only a matter of time before the other girl would get tired of it. Christen was just hoping it would've happen later rather than sooner.

The forward let out a sigh of her own. The frozen treat on top of the table left forgotten.

"Not long, Jules. I know its frustrating, but you have to understand...Tobin is just...she just needs more time. Eventually she'll come around and talk me out of being with you."

Little did the forward know that the midfielder refused to mingle in the "couple's" relationship. Tobin had vowed to remain at arms length and was doinf her best to keep that promise.

Christen, however, had no way of knowing Tobin's code of honor.

"Chris, it's been three weeks. I've had so much fun with you," the blonde admitted as she resumed to eat the yogurt.

And it's true, the blonde loved spending extra time with her best friend. She enjoyed going out to late night dinner "dates". Julie particularly enjoyed visiting places that Christen had previously known about, but had kept to herself. It was nice to have someone to spend weekends with (even if it was just to amuse Christen's snapchat story).

The pair had gotten so close to one another that boundaries seemed to be slipping away from them. Sometimes when they went out Christen would instinctively hold onto Julie's arm or hand. It was out of habit because they had to do that in front of their teammates regularly.

Even practice was more eventful at the university. The team had teased them relentlessly in the best way possible.  
If someone wasn't gushing over them than they were lightly poking fun. Quite frankly Julie didn't mind, she even enjoyed it sometimes. It all seemed rather normal and domestic. Sometimes she forgot that it was all fake.

"Regardless of how fun this is...its been three weeks and I'm tired. I think we need to change our approach. Tobin hasn't responded to what we've been doing," the blonde ended lamely.

Christen's shoulders dropped a little at her friend's words. The blue eyed defender had a point. If anything Tobin seemed more distant now than before. Christen leaned back into the table's booth as she heaved a sigh.

"You're right."

The blonde looked up from the frozen treat to meet the other girl's eyes.

"We need to change our approach."

Julie, with a mouth full of yogurt, replied steadily.

"Have anything in mind?"

Christen smiled at her friend's sloppy eating and grabbed a napkin and offered it out to her, which Julie accepted gingerly.

The dark haired girl then explained her new plan as she figured out the flaws in her old one.

"I think I made you too perfect."

The blonde lifted her brow at the other girl's choice of words.

"I turned you into the model girlfriend and now Tobin not only feels like she has competition, but unbeatable competition. The only solution is to make you a little less...ideal," the forward ended swiftly.

Julie nodded at her friend's reasoning.

"No couple is perfect."

Julie hummed in response as she finished the remains of the frozen yogurt. Christen continued to brainstorm while the other girl was preoccupied.

"So next time everyone sees us, we'll be in a argument with one another."

The forward smiled at her idea.  
In her head it was perfect.

"What would we argue about," the blonde said as looked into her friend's eyes.

Christen smirked at Julie before confidently answering back.

"Let's just say you forgot our anniversary."

The blonde frowned her forehead at Christen's statement.

"Anniversary? When was our anniversary?"

"See! You're already playing the part so well," the forward teased as she laughed lightly.

Julie couldn't help but smile along with her friend. The other girl just had that effect on her.


	6. Bonfire

**Week 3  
January**

The brown eyed midfielder drank her beer greedily despite the fact that it left a biter taste on her tongue. The fact that it had been sitting out in the sun for sometime made it all the less appealing, but Tobin didn't mind. Tonight was going to be a long one and she needed to numb some of her senses one way or another. The only plausible solution in sight was the liquor brewing in the keg Kelley had brought to the bonfire.

"Hey champ, maybe you should slow down."

The browned eyed girl looked over to meet the eyes of her best friend.

Alex looked down curiously at her friend, not completely understanding why she was so taken by the alcohol tonight. Sure everyone on the team drank on occasion, but Tobin was never one to drink over a certain amount. Tonight, however, it looked like she was trying to exceed the limit she had established for herself long ago.

"Tobs, are you good?"

The blue eyed striker couldn't resist the urge to find an answer to her friend's behavior.  
When Tobin nodded lightly and pulled the red solo cup back to her lips, Alex let her be. Despite giving the other girl some space, she still kept somewhat of a watchful eye towards her as she mingled with the other guest at the bonfire.

"If you need anything just call me over," Alex said before patting Tobin on the arm and walking away.

When Tobin realized that her friend was no longer by her side she sighed in relief. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand suddenly feeling very foggy. By now she had drank enough to be buzzed and the alcohol in her body was beginning to settle in the oddest way.

"Hey, Tobin!"

The middy jumped at the sound of the familiar voice.

"Heyy...".

The soccer player couldn't help but drawl out her greeting as she saw the green eyed striker make her way over. Just looking at Christen made Tobin's head spin, and the cheap beer resting in her stomach only spurred her hazy state further.

_God she's so beautiful._

Tobin's train of thought was interrupted as the dark haired forward crashed her body onto hers for a hug. The initial shock of the striker pressing against her faded and eventually the middy wrapped her arms around the shorter girl's torso. She rested her head on her shoulder, taking full advantage of the embrace to get closer to her.

The hug lasted longer than expected and it seemed as if both girl's had no intention of letting go anytime soon. Tobin felt like she was holding on to a shattered dream with Christen in her arms. It was a bittersweet concept that left her feeling empty, yet fulfilled all at the same time.

Someone cleared their throat releasing both girl's from their trance.

When Christen looked up to see who had interrupted their moment she was surprised to see Julie standing by awkwardly as she held a plastic red cup in her hand.

"Hey Tobin," the blonde said as she stood by Christen.

Tobin, feeling the effects of the alcohol clouding her brain, nodded her head in acknowledgment towards the blonde defender.

Julie's presence made Tobin feel guilty (and a tad bit scared). By no means was Tobin trying to start confrontation, especially not with Julie. I mean the defender had a good two inches on her and she was probably ten times stronger. Regardless of this JJ was a sweetheart, and Tobin couldn't find it in herself to see her as anything other than that.

The air was thick with a awkward tension as the three girls awaited the other to say something. Julie was rocking gently back and forth on her heels as Tobin was blinking rapidly trying to sober up.

"So tonight's pretty. I mean like the weather..."

Christen tried her best to spark up conversation and at the moment the only thing that came to mind was their surroundings.

She wasn't lying when she said the night looked 'pretty'. The team had gotten together at the local beach to hold the bonfire and the sun had set a while back leaving only a handful of constellations to look at in the sky. The atmosphere was soothing despite the fact that Kelley and Syd had desperately wanted everyone to get drunk.

"Hm? Oh yeah! Yeah it's pretty..," the midfielder said absently as she stole a glance at the sky before looking back down at the couple in front of her.

It wasn't long before she felt nervous and self-conscious. The fact was that Tobin was already a blabbering mess around Christen when she was sober, she didn't want to sounded downright ridiculous drunk.

"I think I'm gonna take a walk," the midfielder said steadily as she tried desperately to get away from the pair.

Tobin slowly started to back away, but stopped when she felt a soft hand on her upper arm.

"Cool! I'll come with," Christen said brightly as she brushed up against Tobin's arm slightly, sending shivers up the other girl's body.

The tanned middy was taken back by the girl's willingness. Sure her and Christen got along well enough, but she was here with her girlfriend.

_Wasn't she?_

Tobin caught a glimpse of Julie before she was being pulled away in the opposite direction by the green eyed striker. The blonde defender was left behind to her own advances as the dark haired pair made their way towards the edge of the shore.

The sound of waves crashing lightly in the night painted a clear picture in Tobin's head how the water must've of looked like this time of day. Because it was past sunset the only thing keeping the pair company was the flashlight the midfielder had brought along with her.

"So how have you been," Christen asked gently as she looked up to met the midfielder's eyes.

The forward held the other girl's gaze lightly with her own as they continued to walk across the beach's sandy shore. It was difficult to make eye contact in the dark, but it was still some what manageable and therefore meaningful, especially with the way Christen decided to look at Tobin.

Tobin opened her mouth to answer, but her slightly drunken state along with Christen's eyes distracting her caused her to trip over her own feet making her hit the shore below her head on.

"Umph," Tobin groaned as she cursed under her breath.

"Oh my god! Tobin, are you okay?!"

Christen was instantly by the midfielder's side as she crouched down next to the fallen girl.

"I'm fine...just tripped."

The midfielder slowly pushed her body off the ground in a attempt to get up, but Christen's soft touch urged her to stop.

"It's fine Tobin. Just sit down for a while, it looked like you took a hard fall."

With that the green-eyed forward reached across the sand to grab the flashlight that Tobin had accidentally dropped.

The midfielder took the other girl's advice and sat up but remained on the ground.

It was strange to sit in the dark, but she felt calm as the sound of the waves hitting the shore resonated softly in the air around her.

"Here you go," Christen said softly as she handed Tobin back her flashlight.

The midfielder took it gratefully and with a sheepish smile as she thanked the other girl.

Shortly after Christen situated herself next to the midfielder and sat comfortably by her side. The forward sighed in delight as she felt the shore's sand between her toes and the night's cool air brush against her skin. Although Christen never appreciated the strong smell of salt water, she had to admit that tonight it fit the occasion.

Tobin had kept the flashlight on and placed it between her and Christen, almost as a physical barrier. Despite this Christen remained close to her the other girl.

"Why didn't you invite Julie to come with us, Chris?"

Perhaps it was the alcohol that gave Tobin the amount of courage to throw out her filter completely, or maybe it was just her burning curiosity getting the better of her, regardless of what caused her to ask the question, she was now determined to find a answer.


End file.
